Monday, August 8, 2011

08/08/2011
Early last week, I predicted
the creation of a “substate” in Mindanao this September under the
auspices of the present government to accommodate the US’ little
surrogates in that part of the country, the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF). I explained to my three friends, noted “sons of Mindanao,”
the oft-repeated pattern of attacks on government military units
preceding all attempts at a US-imposed solution to the Mindanao
territorial problem. At the same time, I informed them that rumors of a
September substate implementation in fact emanate from circles within
the government “peace panel.”

Since few still understand what a
“substate” really means, I explained by way of a statement from the
Independent International Commission on Kosovo (IICK): “The classic 19th
century concept of sovereignty, even if it rarely pertained in
practice, was a concept of absolute territorial sovereignty. In the 21st
century, sovereignty is necessarily shared and dependent on agreements
with a range of international actors.”

In that report, the concept
of “earned sovereignty” was mentioned as integral to the substate,
which unambiguously means eventual independence. It said, “Earned
sovereignty is achieved… (whereby) the state and substate entity may
both exercise sovereign authority and functions over a defined
territory.” Moreover, “international institutions may also exercise
sovereign authority and functions in addition to or in lieu of the
parent state.”

Then, it gets more interesting: “The second core
element is institution-building… Here the substate entity, frequently
with the assistance of the international community, undertakes to
construct institutions for self-government (while)… The third… is the
eventual determination of the final status of the substate entity.”

And
here’s the clincher: “In many instances the status will be determined
by a referendum, while in others it may involve a negotiated settlement…
Invariably, the determination of final status for the substate entity
involves the consent of The International community … (emphasis mine)”

Since
Kosovo is a prime example, then we should know that such a framework is
no solution to the problem, given what we can see happening there
today.

Kosovo, which is 92 percent Albanian and 8 percent other
minorities (including ethnic Serbs), was radically destabilized in the
early 1990s when it was still under Serbia’s moderate autonomous Rugova
government. Back then, the US sponsored the Kosovo Liberation Army
(KLA), which led a campaign of terror against the Serbs; thus, provoking
the ultra-nationalists. The resulting internal strife subsequently
provided the US the perfect excuse for a UN peacekeeping force.

Kosovo
was thereafter pried apart from Serbia in 1999 after three months of
the US’ bombing of Belgrade. The KLA eventually assumed leadership in
Kosovo government, but is today under investigation by the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for many atrocities.

In
early January, PACE voted to support a report by Swiss MP Dick Marty
that alleged “a criminal network tied to the Kosovo Liberation Army, KLA
(which) executed prisoners and harvested their kidneys to sell for
illicit organ transplant” (with) Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci as
head of the operation.

Former International Criminal Court (ICC)
Milosevic prosecutor Carla del Ponte at that time was also investigating
Thaci until the US pressured for her removal.

However, despite
the sordid background of the US’ allies in Kosovo, it declared
independence in 2008, over the objections of Serbia, Russia, China,
Spain and many other countries.

That will also be the eventual fate of the MILF substate. And the promise of a long-lasting peace is nothing but an illusion.

Just
two weeks ago, July 26, BBC reported: “Kosovo police forces of the
‘substate’ of Serbia, Kosovo, made a ‘bid to take over two border
crossing in the ethnic Serb north’… Kosovo police units, who came under
fire, pulled back after Serbs refusing to recognize their authority took
up arms and mounted roadblocks. Nato-led peacekeepers moved into the
area to calm the situation. The US and EU criticized the Kosovan
government for acting without consulting international bodies. The whole
episode shows just how problematic the north of Kosovo remains.”

The
UN peacekeepers intervened to keep the two sides apart and both
economies continue to suffer. The end result of the substate concept and
political arrangement is that where there was once a relatively genuine
sovereign state, two puppet states emerge. As with Serbia and Kosovo,
both puppet states today, the Republic of the Philippines will be
diminished and the MILF will rise as a rival in the area so that both
will be kept by foreign powers in constant conflict.

The new
diminished Philippine Republic and the new substate of the MILF are all
thanks to the “great patriotic peacemaking efforts” of the
Cojuangco-Aquino clan, which has always led in creating “better
conditions” for national dignity and sovereignty — from the oath of
allegiance of Benigno S. Aquino Sr. and Aurora Aquino, grandparents of
BSA III, to the Japanese conquerors; to Ninoy Aquino’s exposé of the
Jabidah project to retake Sabah; to Corazon Aquino’s ceding of Sabah to
Malaysia; and now, the new MILF substate.

We owe all these to the
Cojuangco-Aquinos who are now riding the bandwagon of oil and natural
gas having attended the MILF-PeNoy Tokyo talks, sharing the bonanza with
J. Robinson West, chairman of PFC Energy and US Institute for Peace.

Such
is the traitor class that the US has entrenched into power through
various means, such as Hocus PCOS—the reason BSA III is only too willing
to oblige lest he find himself soon in the same position as Gloria
Arroyo today.

While this is happening, other treasonous rats also
play — from the CodeNGO et al. gobbling up the P4-billion administrative
cost of the Conditional Cash Transfer; to Purisima, Tentangco et al.
wallowing in the fruits of RP surplus investments in their foreign
investement partners. Truly, for as long as this traitor class remains
in power, there is no hope for this nation.

08/08/2011
Worried questions were raised
over the likely ripple effects of the unprecedented credit rating
downgrade on the United States by Standard and Poor’s (S&P) the
other day, one of three globally-recognized credit watchdogs, the other
two being Moody’s and Fitch.

Even in the United States, the
anticipation is high on how Asia, the first region in the world that
will translate the US ratings cut into actual market movements, will
react today.

Calls were also made, including that of Finance
Secretary Cesar Purisima for the financial world to consider an
alternative international currency to the US dollar, which has lost its
stability as a result of the current financial and now political
turmoil, as a result of the vicious debate on debt ceilings, in the
world’s biggest economy.

Noynoy, in turn, was immediately in the
news supposedly “scrambling” his economic officials to prepare for the
impact of the credit downgrade. S&P’s downgrade, while
unprecedented, has been a long time in coming. The US economy appears to
have yet to rise from the 2007 financial turmoil and its consequent
effect of a global crisis that hit most of the big European economies..... MORE

08/08/2011
With that secret deal Noynoy
and the rebel chieftain agreed upon, which definitely will give the Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) access not only to state recognition
and public funds, but also power, position, land and a hold on natural
resources in Mindanao, such a deal will create a more trouble and
violence in Mindanao, especially under an expanded Autonomous Region in
Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) which can prove fairly beneficial to the rebel
group in its bid for independence, following its claimed “right to
self-determination.”

This has to be the dire consequence of that
secret deal that will likely be implemented if that ARMM poll
synchronization law is upheld as constitutional by the high court.

The
fact that Noynoy pushed Congress — through coercion and bribery — to
pass that law that gave him the authority to appoint officers in charge
(OICs) to replace elected ARMM officials already shows that such moves
to ensure the “electoral” victory of the MILF-identified individuals
have been set in motion by Noynoy.

Without an election and
appointing ARMM OICs by next month, Noynoy could well assure Al Haj
Murad that it will be his people who will sit in the ARMM and come 2013,
fraudulent elections in ARMM will be done, but this time the fraud
would be handled and operated by Noynoy and his political operators
while invoking his hypocritical daang matuwid and reform mantra..... MORE

08/08/2011
WASHINGTON — Given the size
of the US economy and the preeminent role of the dollar worldwide, the
cut to Washington’s credit rating ought to spill over throughout the
global economy.

But for the same reason — that the dollar and US
debt are so widely held and relied on in finance and trade — many
analysts think the impact will not be too heavy, at least in the short
run.

Standard & Poor’s cut the US’s top-rank triple-A rating
down a notch, to AA+, for the first time ever on Friday, technically
signaling that the country’s reliability for paying its debts had
decreased.

S&P rejected Washington’s efforts to demonstrate it
had embarked on a clear path to slash the country’s deficit and reduce
its debt load..... MORE

08/08/2011
So, what negotiations, peace
or otherwise, did Marvic Leonen “plagiarize” this time around? This was
the question asked of the legal experts in our regular Saturday Forum at
Annabel’s after our media friends decried what they thought was the
treasonous act of GRP Negotiating Panel Chief Leonen of bringing P-Noy
to a face-to-face “unofficial” meeting with MILF Chairman Al Haj Murad
in Tokyo last Thursday. They were particularly incensed by Leonen’s
confused and tangled pronouncements about this so-called
“out-of-the-box” move as he triumphantly announced to one and all that
the “secret trip” was a success. To most experts this move was not only
ill advised but out and out treason and Leonen and his immediate boss,
OPAPP Chief Ging Deles should be raked over the coals for it.

It
is putting the cart before the horse. And no matter how good or noble
the intentions are, the implications for the country, here and abroad,
are certainly dire and risky. Taken in the context of international
diplomacy and developments, it is just like Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu meeting with the Hamas chief before any peace deal is
finalized and the latter officially presents documents abrogating their
group’s vow to “extinguish” the State of Israel. Or, the Irish
Republic’s President meeting with the Sinn Fein central committee even
before the signing of the “Black Friday’” agreement. That’s a no-no
under any circumstance especially since the MILF remains an armed
political group determined in setting up its own state out the
predominantly Muslim provinces in Mindanao and Palawan..... MORE

08/08/2011
Former Trade Minister Roberto
Ongpin broke his silence yesterday over the criminal complaint the
state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) filed against him
and 25 bank officials as he placed squarely on newly appointed DBP
chairman Jose Nuñez the responsibility on the suicide of DBP lawyer
Benjamin Pinpin who he said took his life due to pressures applied on
him by Nuñez. Pinpin was laid to rest Saturday and a high-ranking DBP
official asked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to step into
the supposed suicide case.

Pinpin was among DBP officials tasked to investigate the DBP transactions that tooke place during the Arroyo administration.

DBP
chief legal counsel Benilda Tejada personally went to the office of the
NBI last Friday to submit documents which were left by Pinpin who supposedly commited suicide on Aug. 2 in a comfort room of a hotel in Las Piñas City.

According
to Tejada, they are requesting the help of the NBI in investigating the
death of Pinpin despite the existence of a suicide note..... MORE

08/08/2011
Government authorities have
not heard from the communist-abductors of a Surigao del Sur town mayor
even as intensified pursuit and rescue operations by the military are
continuing.

Surigao del Sur Gov. Johnny Pimentel, who also heads
the provincial crisis management committee, said while they have
suspects on what particular group of the New People’s Army (NPA) was
responsible in the kidnapping of Lingig Mayor Henry Dano, no contact has
been made yet with the kidnappers or the town executive himself.

“Up to this moment, we have no contact yet with the kidnappers of Mayor Henry Dano and himself,” he added.

Pimentel, however, said pursuit operations by the military are now ongoing..... MORE

08/08/2011
Vice President Jejomar Binay
yesterday said his party-mate Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III would be a
welcome addition to the Senate once he is allowed to formally assume as
senator.

Contrary to the Aquino administration’s recent
pronouncement that it is not counting on Pimentel’s support, Binay
believes the government can rely on the incoming senator to advance the
interest of Ooverseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and in addressing the
country’s housing concerns.

Binay said he intends to sit down with
Pimentel “to discuss with him the future directions” of their political
party, PDP-Laban, and other key issues like overseas Filipino workers,
human trafficking and housing.

The Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) may proclaim Pimentel as the duly elected senator within the next two weeks..... MORE

Another
blast rocked Cotabato City last Saturday evening, hitting similar
establishment that was exploded with an improvised explosive device
(IED) last Tuesday.

Military Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom)
spokesman Col. Leopoldo Galon said that a grenade was exploded by still
unidentified men at the Savior Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Security
Agency, owned by JV Martinez, along Quezon Avenue around 7 p.m.

Initial report showed that no one was hurt during the blast.

Last
Tuesday, an IED was also exploded at the SWAT office resulting in the
killing of two civilians while nine others were wounded..... MORE

The
Lonely Planet says that Portugal is home to medieval castles and
picture-perfect villages scattered over meandering coastlines and
flower-covered hillsides, but if reports are true, it will also be home
for former President now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Arroyo and her family who,
according to reports, are planning to seek asylum in the Iberian
Peninsula’s “best kept secret.”

According to San Juan Rep. Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, he has heard of the Arroyos exit plan.

“I
have heard that they already have an exit plan to Portugal which does
not have an extradition treaty with the Philippines. This only shows
guilt, as they have a plan to flee,” Ejercito said.

The Arroyos
are facing a string of plunder, graft and tax evasion charges in
connection with the P728-million fertilizer scam, the NBN-ZTE deal and
other funds-related cases in the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office
and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp..... MORE

08/08/2011
A group of law students have
urged the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to
specifically define the implementation of no-smoking ban in the
metropolis to protect the civil liberties of the people.

The
Association of Law Students of the Philippines (ALSP) said Republic Act
9211 or the Tobacco Regulation Act enumerates areas where smoking is
prohibited.

“Thus, if an area is not included in the list of
prohibited areas, such as streets and highways, one can smoke there,”
Dino Austria of San Beda College and president of the ALSP, said.

Austria was reacting to the arrest of some persons who were caught smoking on sidewalks in Metro Manila.
.... MORE